Everything Caitlin Clark Said At Fever's Media Day in New Video Ahead of 2026 WNBA Season

Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark gained a new perspective after missing most of the 2025 WNBA season through injury.

The third-year guard is fully healthy weeks out from Indiana's opener on May 9 against the Dallas Wings. During media day Wednesday, Clark said part of her will miss having the extra time to interact with fans she had when she wasn't playing.

"When I was hurt, I felt like that was something that was really humbling for me and something I was super grateful for," she said. "When I showed up to a game, I took as much time as I could to sign an autograph. That might be the only bad thing about this year is I'm not gonna have as much time to sign autographs when I'm preparing to play an actual game, so I'll still do my best that I can every single time we play.

"… All these young kids and these young boys, young girls and even older fans as well, they're still showing up and screaming and cheering and that's one, because obviously they love this team and they love all the players on this team. But two, they don't really care how many points I score."

In her abbreviated second season, Clark had a 31.5 percent usage rate, according to Basketball Reference. She cited her expectation to work off the ball a little more.

"I think mostly on dead balls I think I'm the best transition player in the league. That's where I thrive," she said. "Everybody knows that's my game, so getting the ball off a rebound or in transition, that's probably when I'm gonna be the primary ball-handler more than anything. Getting off the ball a little bit and catching your breath — it is exhausting bringing the ball up 94 feet versus pressure every single time. We certainly need to find somebody that can handle the ball a little bit and give me a little bit of a break."

Clark cited first-round pick Raven Johnson and veteran free-agent signing Tyasha Harris as players who can help to achieve that. She also believes three-time All-Star Aliyah Boston, who averaged 3.7 assists in 2025, can be an offensive fulcrum in the post.

In general, the Fever decided to run it back after reaching the WNBA semifinals. They re-signed Kelsey Mitchell, Sophie Cunningham and Lexie Hull, while Johnson and forward Monique Billings were their biggest outside additions.

Clark had high praise for Mitchell, calling her "a tremendous basketball player" and "really cool people."

"She's very down to earth and selfless and fun to be around and really cares about people," Clark said. "I think that speaks to why she continues to sign back here. She enjoys the people that are here, and she also feels loved and cared for. People are here to serve her as well, but she does it in return too. Just really fortunate that she's back here. I know I've said this before, but she makes my job a lot easier when you have somebody in the backcourt like that. There's nobody better in the league for me to play with."

The Fever have their first preseason game Saturday against the New York Liberty. Clark alluded to reporters that she doesn't expect to play big minutes, with the focus more on showcasing the players fighting for roster spots.

The 2024 Rookie of the Year shook off some of the rust already when she represented Team USA at the FIBA Women's World Cup qualifying tournament.

Carrying over so much continuity from last year should also help Clark quickly regain her bearings on the court.